Chance at Light
by thunder2010
Summary: No one thought Draco Malfoy could change. He was the cowardly Death Eater and he always would be. But when Hermione's friends leave to fight Voldemort with out her, she finds friendship in the most unlikely person.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I am not J.K. Rowling. Nor do I own Harry Potter or any of the characters.

* * *

The scenery around him almost fit the situation perfectly. There was something oddly dark about it and the sky looked as if it were undoubtedly threatening a storm. Dark gray clouds twisted and turned curiously in the sky and lifted the man's hair ever so slightly. In order to give himself something to do, the man busied himself with the task of sweeping his hair back behind his ears. It wasn't as if his hair was long, though it did sit only about two inches below his earlobes. He was, as it so seemed, a man of stone, but if that had been true, why did he feel himself crumbling?

He had been given a task.

"You will do what this paper says Draco. The Dark Lord will be waiting. I'm counting on you, failure will not be acceptable." "Yes father."

He gritted his teeth. This should not have been happening. He walked out of Knockturn Alley with a grim face and the vial in his pocket made him feel heavier inside with every step. It wasn't enough to be tortured physically and mentally, but now they had given him a task for something he would never even have dreamed of doing, but he had.

His fist clenched the paper in his left hand. It had been given to him the day before he had gone shopping for new supplies. Before he had bumped into Granger and knew his life was completely worthless. Kill the mudblood.

Those three words; etched clearly in his mind now. He would never be able to forgive himself…

So had gone in the shop, made sure there were no witnesses, and killed the man at the counter in cold blood. He still remembered seeing the man twitch as he had reached in the dead man's pocket and pull out the vial of green liquid.

He remembered stuttering on the Unforgivable Curse and choking on the power that surged through him as the words left his mouth.

"You have to mean it, Draco." He had been told multiple times. Draco closed his eyes as a wave of nausea passed over him. What scared him was that in order to protect his family, he would do it again. And he was afraid he would soon start meaning it.

* * *

Hermione walked quickly as she headed to the bookstore. Annie Foltlore's new spells book was out for only a limited time and Hermione had to get it before the store selling it closed. She already knew it would be a long line and- "OOF!" she exclaimed as she smashed into someone and fell. "Sorry I-" Hermione looked up to meet a pair of steely eyes. "Watch where you're going Malfoy!" she said getting up, expecting a snide remark but never got one. He just stood there looking at her as she got up. His eyes were filled with all the muster and toughness she always saw, but today she thought she saw something else. "Malfoy?" she asked.

Draco licked his lips. He had to say something, not stand here staring like she had grown two heads. In the end he decided not to say anything. He just turned on his heel and started to walk away.

"Oy, Malfoy!" he heard her call behind him. He turned to look at her and saw her holding his vial! He quickly came back and snatched it from her. Hermione's eyes widened. "Excuse me? A 'thank you' would be nice!"

He just looked at her. "Don't involve yourself in my affairs, Granger. It's none of your business."

She rolled her eyes. "I didn't ask what it was. I asked for a 'thank you'."

He smirked. "Did you really think-" suddenly he stopped seeing his aunt Bellatrix coming toward them.

"Draco!" she scolded grabbing him by the arm swiftly and glaring at Granger. "What are you doing here talking to this mudblood filth! Come back to the manor with me this instant!"

He hating being seen bossed around, and he also wanted to piss off his aunt. "Thanks, Granger." He said softly for only the three of them to hear and smiled.

Bellatrix twisted his arm. Malfoy grunted before disappearing from Hermione's view.

'What the hell?' she thought to herself getting in the line for the bookshop. She looked at the paper Malfoy had dropped and saw magic writing. She tucked it away and decided to look it up at Hogwarts later.

* * *

They all stepped on the train. Harry, Hermione, Ron, Neville, Luna, Ginny and the Patail twins piled into a compartment all chatting about their summers away from each other. For the golden trio it was mostly memory talks for they had spent almost half of the summer in the burrow.

It was their last year and as the topic changed to Quidditch, Hermione found herself thinking of Krum. She hadn't heard from him for at least 2 weeks now. It didn't bother her though. He was turning into just a memory. But it would have been nice to hear from him once in awhile, she thought.

A knock at the compartment startled her, since she was the closest to the door. She looked up to see Malfoy. He didn't have on his robes on yet and with his button-up shirt only half-way done, she could glance a peek of his muscular, tanned chest. Slightly blushing, she opened the door and felt everyone around her stood up. "Malfoy." She nodded at him because he seemed to be just looking at her.

He caught himself and looked to meet her eyes. "Have you forgotten that you are Head Girl this year, Granger?" he asked with a smirk. "Because me and the prefects have been waiting in the Head cabin for a while now."

Hermione slapped her forehead in surprise. "Ohmygosh! I completely forgot!" she exclaimed. "I'll be there in a moment," she added wondering why Malfoy hadn't left yet. She turned to her bag so she could get out her clipboard. "Now where is my…"

Malfoy leaned against the compartment door lazily saying, "Take your time, Granger."

Ron narrowed his eyes at him. "Don't you have somewhere to be, Ferret? Hermione will be there when she's good and ready."

Draco didn't respond. Something about Weasley's voice reminded him of the shopper keeper's life he had ended a week ago. He mentally slapped himself; he needed to forget about that man. He was dead now, there was no way that could be undone now.

"Alright, I have everything I need." Hermione said with a sigh. Draco flicked a glance at her and turned around, leading the way to the compartment he had just come from.

All the prefects smiled in relief as the HeadBoy and Girl entered. Hermione immediately started rattling off about everything they had to do. Soon she was talking about being honest and responsible and Draco began to get bored. He tuned out of her speech and focused on how she looked. Despite her seemingly cheerful attitude her face seemed to have lost her spunk. There was tiredness about it and her eyes didn't have their natural spark. Her hair was in a bun with a small butterfly clip—no wait it wasn't a butterfly, it was a snake. And it was moving. And, near the top… a face? A skull…

The Dark Mark.

He felt the blood drain out of his face as if the ground has moved from beneath his feet. "Malfoy? Malfoy!" His eyes darted back to her face. He looked back at her clip and saw it was just a butterfly. Bloody. Hell.

He looked like he'd seen a ghost, was he okay? Hermione pressed her hand to his forehead. He quickly moved away as if she burned him. "Malfoy?" and his eyes kept looking at her hair. "Malfoy!" 'Is it really that messed up?' she thought her hand instinctively going to fix her clip on the back.

"No!" he pushed her hand away from the clip. He was staring at her hair but also holding her hand. And he wasn't letting go.

"D- Draco, are you okay?" That seemed to snap him out of it. He looked at her and took his hand away. The prefects were whispering now, and he seemed to compose himself.

"I-I'll be right back." He stuttered, stepping out of the compartment.

Hermione watched him go in disbelief. 'What is going on?' she thought, going after him. "Malfoy?" he was standing leaning against the wall catching his breath with his eyes closed. He hadn't seemed to have heard her. She stepped closer to him about to tap his shoulder. "Mal-?"

"Granger." He said, his eyes still closed. "I have a headache and I need a break. I said I'll be right back."

"Oh," Hermione responded, feeling a little foolish.

"Go back inside and finishing explaining Ms. Goody-two-shoes, I'm coming soon." He said hoping the name would make her leave him in peace.

Hermione gave him one last concerned look and walked back without another word.

He sank to the ground, knowing she had messed up whatever little meditation he had been trying to achieve. 'It was just a butterfly. Just a butterfly.' He repeated in his head.

But he knew what he had seen. And he had seen it turn into the Dark Mark. He put his head in his hands and sighed. His past, present, and unwanted-future seemed to be catching up to him. 'I don't want this.' He thought, wishing he had the balls to go tell someone. But no, he couldn't.

He stood up with all his Malfoy charisma and conjured a glass of water with his wand. After gulping it down, he made it vanish and went back into the compartment.

* * *

**A/N: I started writing this story a long time ago and then I deleted it as of recently because I reread it and decided I hated it. I'm rewriting it now. It's going to have mostly the same plot and hopefully better writing. **

**Sorry if you liked the other one more but I hope you like this one as much.**


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I only own my plot

* * *

Chapter Two

With the sorting of the houses and feast complete, everyone was talking about their summer. To the Golden Trio, it was nothing new to hear about rumors of Voldemort running around. Harry walked calmly ahead of the group and Hermione noticed he had basically withdrawn from everyone since Sirus's death.

She tapped him on the shoulder and he turned to look at her. "Harry?" she asked.

"I had another dream," he whispered, and Hermione paled. However, Harry wasn't looking at her; he was looking straight ahead, so as not to seem suspicious.

"A-another? On the train?"

"Yea, when you and the other girls had left to change, I dozed off and…" he stopped as someone passed in front of him.

"And?" Hermione asked, eager to see if she could, in anyway, help her friend.

Harry sighed, "I saw a house… and Sirius was in it. Not the Sirius WE knew, a younger one." He slightly smiled at the memory. "And then… he was crying. Stammering about some paper, and a brother or something and-"

"Ms. Granger!" called McGonagall's voice from the top of the steps. "You're supposed to be helping the first years get to their dorms like Mr. Malfoy!" she snapped as Hermione reached her.

"I- yes, ma'am." She replied hastily and turned Harry. "Um, I'll catch up with you later," she mumbled.

"Sure, of course." Harry said, acting as if they had been talking about nothing, instead of a situation that could pertain to life and death.

Hermione quickly hugged him and he smiled. "Don't worry, Harry. I'll come by later and we'll talk, I promise." She said with a smile and he nodded, off to the Gryffindor common room.

"Oy, Granger, shirking responsibilities already?" called a voice from behind her and Hermione looked to see Malfoy and another Slytherin, whose name she recalled was Zabinni.

She ignored them and went to a boy who was looking confused. "Need some help?" she asked.

He looked up at her curiously. "What house are you in?" he asked, he had a rather soft voice. He was short and had black hair and large eyes.

"Um, Gryffindor." She replied.

"Oh. I'm Slytherin." He kept his head down and Hermione guessed he didn't think that was a good thing.

"Well, I'm Hermione Granger," she said sticking her hand out. The kid cautiously shook it.

"I'm Stephan Jaulant. I'm not supposed to talk to people like you," he said turning away. Hermione blinked, but followed him. He probably had no clue where he was going anyway.

"And why not Stephan?" she asked, her voice light and her steps matching his as she watched as he surveyed the paintings.

"One, you're a Gryffindor." He paused and Hermione waited as he stopped at a picture that had welcomed him. After greeting it, they kept walking, when suddenly he said, "And, not a pureblood." At the last part Hermione stopped walking. He sighed and stopped as well but didn't look at her.

"Wh-who told you that?" she asked, trying to remain calm.

"My uncle, everyone knows who you are though." He turned to look at her and Hermione raised an eyebrow. "You're Harry Potter's friend, right?"

"Um, yes," There was a bit of a silence and they began walking again. "Stephan?"

"Hm?"

"Does it matter to you that I'm not a pureblood and in Gryffindor?"

"It should," was his response. "I plan to be a death eater you know." Hermione flinched at that. "Just like my dad."

Now she understood, a lot of parents taught and raised their children to be just like them. A couple years ago, if Hermione had heard this, she would have been shocked beyond moving; now it was almost natural for this kind of talk. She would have to mention this to Dumbledore at least, though.

"Does it matter to you though? Who I am and what I'm made up of?" she asked again.

"It should… right?" he asked, his voice a little hesitant. They turned a corner and Hermione realized they were almost at the Slytherin common room.

"You don't always have to follow others you know; you may find it's not always the right path. Do you know what Death Eaters do?" she asked after a couple of seconds.

"It doesn't matter, I'm going to be one." he said with a frown. "To avenge my parents."

"What?" Hermione asked.

They arrived at the door and Stephan stopped. "Someone killed my father and mother. They killed him because he was a Death Eater. My mother wasn't one. She turned him to someone like you- a non-Death Eater. They took him away and…"

"What about your mother? Who took her away?" Hermione asked timidly.

"The Ministry," he said flatly.

"I don't understand," Hermione said before she could stop herself. He turned and glared at her, his light blue eyes shiny with unshed tears.

"They took her away from me too. They said she was an ally to the Death Eaters. That's what happened! And she never came back!" he choked with a sob.

"I-"

"Save it, Granger." A voice said and Hermione turned to see Malfoy come out of the shadows. He came up and put a hand on the boy's shoulder and he flinched. "You Gryffindors would never understand what Slytherins have to go through anyway. You think just by showing a little mercy and justice that everything in the world will fix itself. But, for people like us, it doesn't." The boy leaned into Malfoy and wiped away his tears.

"Malfoy, I never-" suddenly her voice broke and she felt a tear roll down her cheek. She swiped it away angrily only to have another one take its place.

"For some of us, Voldemort is the only chance we've got." He said in a dead voice and turned around and said the password to the door.

"Stephan!" she called out. "Just because someone decided it was okay to destroy your life, it does not mean your life will get better by hurting others and becoming a Death Eater! Life will just be worse and-"

"What am I supposed to do then?" he asked turning to her. "Join you and be disowned by the only people I have left? Not happening."

Hermione stepped into the common room before the door closed and found herself face to chin with Malfoy; she realized he had grown since she last saw him. The air seemed to drop down a notch and she visibly shivered but kept her eyes on Stephan's. "You don't have to be like everyone else, or you'll just end up even worse like Malf-" she stopped what she was about to say.

"Excuse me Granger?" he asked icily.

"I- I mean, you're still young. And even if becoming a Death Eater is better for you, it wouldn't hurt to give other options a try," she finished with a sigh, realizing what she was saying wasn't really making sense.

"I don't know anymore." He replied sadly, his eyes on the floor and looking very vulnerable.

"Go get some rest," Malfoy coaxed him and Hermione was surprised to hear a soothing and compassionate voice. Not the venom-filled one that was always teasing or upsetting her. "The boy's section is on the left," he said pointing at the stairs that would lead him up. Stephan nodded and shuffled his feet toward the steps.

"Stephan, just give it a try okay?" Hermione gave her last try. He nodded and she sighed as he disappeared.

Then the air dropped another degree when Malfoy landed his eyes on her and started advancing on her. "What were you saying, Granger?" he asked, back to his icy voice and backed Hermione up against the wall. "That he would end up like me?"

"Malfoy, I-" she looked into his eyes, afraid. She was not usually this nervous near him, but she could see something had changed in his eyes.

"What is that even supposed to mean anyway, Granger?" he asked. In panic Hermione started to turn away from him. He grabbed her hand and turned her to face him before she could get away. "What is so wrong with me anyway?" he asked, moving close to her. Usually, he felt powerful seeing people scared because of him, but why did Granger's eyes make him feel like a monster?

"Let go," she whispered, butterflies in her stomach as his face seemed to get closer. "Malfoy, there are more people that might need help." She could feel his thighs on hers and she hated to admit it felt good.

"Am I really that horrible, Granger?" he whispered in her ear and she shivered, and as if on its own instinct, her back arched up a little so his lips met her ear. Shockwaves went through her and she felt her body betraying her.

"Let go," she tried again, her voice in his ear and this time he shivered and felt warm hearing her voice. He leaned in against her more and her hip arched up to meet his. "Malfoy," she heard herself whispering.

"Tell me, Granger, I want to know why you think of me as if I'm bad." He whispered with voice like velvet, and his hips pushing against hers a little. He ghosted his lips down her throat and felt her shiver against him and a blush go down the base of her throat. 'Now,' he thought, ghosting his lips back up, 'THAT feels good.'

Suddenly he moved away from Hermione, letting her go. What had he been doing? He had been so lost in her eyes, he forgot who she was. She was the enemy.

She felt him looking at her and looked back at him, a blush creeping up her cheeks. Their breathing was uneven. She slightly rubbed her wrist and saw faint red lines. "Sorry," he said running a hand through his hair. He seriously did not know what had overcome him.

Despite the situation, Hermione smirked. "Never thought I'd hear you say that, Malfoy," her voice was still a little breathless and Malfoy noticed. There was a brief silence as the pair sized each other up, wondering what the other was thinking. Hermione broke it by clearing her throat and saying calmly, "I have to go talk to Harry for a bit. You should head back to the common room and see if you can find anyone else that needs help." She said and he nodded.

"Yeah, I'll just check on Stephan first though." He said and Hermione nodded briefly, her skin still tingling from Malfoy's touch.

* * *

The story is roughly going to have the same plot, just better writing and hopefully, this time I'll finish it!

Review and tell me what you think!


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Hermione walked to Gryffindor's common room her mind still thinking about Malfoy. Wasn't he her enemy since first year? Why this? Why now, the year she definitely knew he would probably become a Death Eater; and what about Stephan? It seemed so sad that a boy so young had to be forced into a position where becoming a Death Eater seemed as the only option. All these questions were jumbling inside her as she said, "Dew Essence," to the fat lady.

"Hey Hermione," Ginny said and Hermione looked to see Harry and Ginny sitting on the couch.

"Oh… hello Gin, I didn't know you were- Um, I'll probably just go if-"

"No, it's okay." Harry said and gave Ginny a kiss on the cheek. "I'll talk to you later," he said to her and Hermione looked away as Ginny gave him a quick peck on the lips. When she left, it was rather silent except for the crackling fire.

"I- I could just come back later Harry." Hermione finally got out.

She saw Harry smile. "No, I could really use someone to talk to right now. I wouldn't want to worry Ginny though, but… You basically know the whole situation, so it's kind of easier."

Hermione breathed a sigh of relief and sat beside him. "Voldemort's got you tensed already?" she asked in a teasing tone.

He stiffened slightly at the name but nonetheless gave a slight smile. "Yea," he ran a hand through his hair and sighed, his eyes on the fire. "But, there's also something else bothering me too." He said reluctantly.

When he didn't continue Hermione asked hesitantly, "Is it something to do with Ginny?"

Harry didn't know how to respond at first, so he just nodded. "I mean, she makes me happy and I feel great to know that she cares but, she just doesn't understand my situation." He paused and Hermione nodded to urge him to continue. "I'm stressed out and she doesn't realize that I don't really like to talk… about my problems with anyone really. And while everything is going on, she expects me to be fully relaxed and cheerful and ignore the fact that Voldemort could be running loose out there!"

Hermione swallowed. She'd been so busy with her life she'd stopped checking up on her friends. Sure they had all been in the burrow during the summer but she had assumed he was having a good time with Ginny. She never knew about the stress he carried on his shoulders.

"Have you tried explaining that to her?"

"Yes, but we always get into an argument about it in the end. We were actually talking about it before you came." He added and Hermione felt guilty about interrupting. "I miss Sirius," he said softly.

Hermione put her hand on his shoulder and lightly squeezed it. "He's not totally gone, Harry." She said softly. "You've still got your-"

"-memories. Memories I know!" his voice had risen again, and he sighed to calm down. "But Hermione, he was the only one that I could relate to. It doesn't make sense anymore, this defense against Voldemort… and what I'm supposed to do. And now?" He sighed again. "Sirius was the only one who could help me relax! Even in a tough time like this, we could have been laughing it up. Sirius was almost my family; he was the closest thing I had to family, and now he's gone too," He said softly. Hermione knew that Sirius had meant a lot to Harry, but hearing this showed her how alone Harry really was without him.

"Harry, Sirius wouldn't have wanted it to be like this. I know you have a lot on your mind right now, but stressing over this won't help you or anyone. And, I know we've all been tied up in our own things and situations and I've become Head Girl, but Harry I'll always be here. Anything you need to let out, I'm going to stay to listen. Don't worry," Hermione said and Harry managed a smile.

"Thanks, Hermione," he said getting up and Hermione also got up. "I should probably go to sleep now. You too." He gave her a hug and started to go to the stairs.

"Harry, are you going to tell Dumbledore?" she asked him.

"About, your dreams; what you were telling me in the hallway?"

"Oh," Harry said. He'd forgotten all about that. He ran his hand through his hair to think of an excuse so Hermione wouldn't have to worry about it. "I might go take occumencelary training with Dumbledore now, which was his suggestion." Harry said, but Hermione didn't buy it.

"Harry, what made you think I would believe that?" she asked and he gave her a guilty look. "Learning to block those dreams out is important. We both know Dumbledore doesn't have time to teach you. Maybe if we asked McGonagall or Snape agai-"

"Hermione we both also know he won't teach me," Harry said loudly cutting her off. "I interluded on his privacy and-"

"Harry! He needs to get over that! It's in the past! Learning is more import-"

"Hermione, I'll deal with it on my own." He said and turned his back on her, walking away.

"Harry!" she called back, but he wasn't listening. He slammed the door behind him and disappeared. Hermione went back to the Head room, feeling oddly defeated.

The common room was big. It was beautiful and well furnished, but she was not in the mood to marvel at this luxury. Not while her friends were upset.

So she went to take a bath and relax. But it didn't work. She kept thinking about what Harry said. Voldemort. Voldemort was out there. She could never relax, especially with people like Stephan and Malfoy who were looking forward to be Death Eaters. How could Voldemort be brought down when he had people willing to be on his side? Who would do anything to be on his side?

After giving herself a headache, Hermione came out, only to find Malfoy glaring at her, holding a piece of paper. "Where did you get this, Granger?" he asked and she saw it was the paper he had dropped in diagon alley the day he had bumped into her.

The paper that said "Kill the mudblood." If Hermione found out, she would go to Dumbledore and he would be kicked out of Hogwarts before he knew it, Draco thought.

She gasped and reached for it. "Give that back," she yelled, but he held it out of her reach, high above her head. "Malfoy!This isn't funny!"

He didn't look like he was playing though. "Where did you get this, Granger?" he asked again. Hermione reached for it faster this time and tackled him onto the sofa. She was splayed right on top of him and her hand was inches away from the paper. But instead, she was focused on Malfoy and him likewise.

Time seemed to stop his anger seemed to melt away almost immediately when she landed on him. Their eyes were locked on each other so Hermione could see his silver flecks and he found himself staring in her amber eyes. Her skin was still a little flushed from her shower and he could tell she wasn't wearing a bra. He felt himself harden when she pressed herself down, reaching for the paper, and he closed his eyes in slight misery. He closed his eyes, and Hermione admired his long eye lashes which matched his platinum hair. He had gotten a fresh army-cut and his hair made him look different because it didn't flop in front of his forehead. He felt her hand touch his and grab a corner of the paper.

"Caleo," he whispered and opened his eyes.

Hermione's eyes shifted to the paper and watched as it went up in flames, and all she managed to grab was ashes. She looked in his left hand but didn't see a wand.

Malfoy saw the confusion in her eyes and instead of being angry, she asked, "How- how did you do that without a wand?"

He smirked, and before he could stop it, he said, "I'm a pureblood; we have more magic in our bloods than people like you."

Hermione blinked first and Draco watched it turn into understanding, then hurt. "Just because I'm a muggle born doesn't mean I'm any less of a witch then you are a wizard." She hissed, and to her embarrassment, tears welled up. She got up and hurried to her room.

SLAM. Hermione dropped on the floor and hugged her knees to her chest. She hated feeling less of anyone, just because of who her parents were. "I'm just as good as anyone," she whispered to herself and her fist slammed into the wall on her left. The pain seared up her whole arm, but the pain inside was deeper.

* * *

Before everyone knew it, a whole week of school had passed. Hermione was walking from the woods back to the castle through a shortcut. She knew Malfoy had a class after her and would be coming through the main entrance to the forest. If she went this way, she would not see him. But she was surprised when she saw him also cutting through the shortcut.

Hermione walked faster, but somehow he ended up in her path. And he was blocking it.

She looked up at him with a bored look. "Get out of my way." Her voice sounded dead, heavy with sleep. This whole week she had been like that in all of his classes, quiet and daydreaming. He wanted to shake and wake her up from her stupor.

"Why have you been avoiding me?" he asked in his usual icy tone. He had idea why he cared at all, but Hermione was the only reason he talked anymore. Their never-ending bickering was something he gotten used to after all these years, and while his whole life was changing, it would be nice to keep something normal.

She scoffed, "I have no time to be worried about scum like you. I have a life,"

"Oh, nasty word, Granger. I wouldn't use that against me." He pushed her back against the tree.

"Why not? I bet your parents use it all the time; you should be used to it." He frowned in anger; his parents were the only topic that upset him. But she kept his gaze, and she was smiling. "Oh? Have I struck a nerve, Ferret?"

"Why was that paper so important to you anyway?" he asked after a moment of silent staring.

She rolled her eyes, and when she looked back at him, he could still see the raw hurt in them. What had he said that made her feel so bad? He wondered. "I said move. You're not worth my time." She repeated, getting annoyed.

He was about to say something when he noticed that a couple of people were heading their way. He didn't want people to think he was actually associating with the Gryffindor. He moved away from her suddenly, and cold air replaced where their bodies had been touching.

Hermione ignored the way he looked at her before moving away and found her feet taking her to the library once inside the castle. Immediately looking at the books, she relaxed. Then, she saw something that caught her eye.

"Harry?" He looked up from his book to see Hermione standing in front of him.

"Oh, hey, 'Mione." He said as she took a seat opposite him and placed her stuff beside her.

"I thought Dumbledore was talking to you. Ron and I were waiting for you at breakfast."

"Oh sorry, an elf brought me breakfast when I was with Dumbledore, so I already ate. What are you here for?" he asked.

"Nothing except the usual and I was also going to check up on wizard symbols, like different languages. How about you, it's a bit early to be in the library isn't it?"

"Yes, actually Ginny and I are going to spend some time together later so I thought I'd get this out of the way first." He said with a slight blush.

"Oh? So I'm guessing things are going better?" she asked with a smile. She had to remember to catch up with Ginny later.

"Yeah, I guess the distance thing sort of got to me, but I have her back and everything is good again."

"That's good. What are you reading?" He motioned to his book and Hermione read up the spine, "Occlumencary: Volume 1." She beamed at him. "Oh, you're searching it up on your own? I'm proud of you, Harry."

"Thanks," he said with a slight yawn. "But I just started, and it's pretty boring." Hermione rolled her eyes at his laziness but inside she smiled, Harry seemed happier. "How's duty with Malfoy going?" he asked.

"I've managed to avoid him all week," she said not mentioning their encounter five minutes ago. She didn't want to distract Harry from occlumency.

He raised an eyebrow at her lack of a response.

"Honestly, Harry." she lied easily. "The only thing I have to worry about is staying top in class. He's actually starting to become a challenge for me in some classes." Hermione smile weakly at him.

"You could always use an obliterate on him," Harry said with a twinkle in his eye. "Or one of Fred or George's tricks."

"You know I wouldn't go against the rules like that, Harry. It's not allowed to use memory-erasing charms on a student unless for class room purposes." He chuckled; of course, this was Hermione he was dealing with. "But, it does sound like an option." She said with a laugh. Harry smiled and went back to his book as Hermione went to go look up a book on wizarding languages.

She went back to the table after taking out a few. They really were no help, but first she would have to remember what that paper had said. She rubbed her temples, trying to think. 'Why was that paper so important to you anyway?' Malfoy's voice, clear as day replayed in her head. Why did she care anyway?

Ignoring that minor detail, she took out her quill and a piece of blank parchment. Thinking back, she wrote down what she could remember, but it wasn't all of it. She remembered only the first symbol and a part of the last symbol. Looking at it just made her head hurt. Nonetheless, she sat for at least 3 hours reading four whole books, but nothing resembled the symbols.

"Hermione, dear," called the librarian's voice. "What are you doing inside on a lovely Saturday such as today?"

"Oh nothing, I was just trying to figure out um, a code. Do you think you know this?" she asked showing her the paper.

The librarian looked at it for a moment and pointed at the last symbol, "I've seen this before somewhere, goblin writing maybe." She thought and handed Hermione back the paper. "But I wouldn't know what it or the other symbol means. Sorry dear." She said. "But really, you shouldn't be spending all your time in here."

Hermione nodded and got her stuff, she should probably make sure the prefects were doing their duties. "Have a nice day," she said to the librarian.

* * *

-_- blah. that's all i have to say about this chapter. blah blah blah blah blah blah blahhhhhhhh it's just alot of words, BUT I am getting ideas :] yet I still have to find a way to put a dark draco in there -_- well, anyway i hope the chapter is less blah :D have a nice day and** review **

For those that read this story previously know that something exciting will be happening very soon!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Hermione sighed as she watched Harry, Ginny, and Ron head to the quidditch pitch for practice again.

She hadn't talked to them really talked to them for a long time, and she felt they were drifting away from her. They even had Quidditch practices together and could talk then, but she was busy with the school and her own work. Ginny and Harry's relationship was getting better, but she had not talked to Ginny about that in a long time either.

She felt like everyone was fading away.

That night, Hermione was about to fall asleep when an owl tapping at the window woke her up. It was a snow white owl with large green eyes and Hermione knew it was Harry's. She smiled and went to it to take off the letter, and as soon as she did, Hedwig immediately flew away into the dark night.

'That's strange,' she thought to herself. When she read the letter, the ground seemed to shift beneath her feet and Hermione felt a sinking feeling go through her. For a second, he thought it might be a joke. It was a joke right?

But she had known her friends for a long time. This wasn't a joke. Which meant they had left her.

She immediately headed to Dumbledore's office; she had to tell him about this. He would be the one person that could find her friends and convince them that they had made an idiotic decision. He could fix this.

"Miss Granger?" She heard McGonagall ask when she arrived at the gargoyles in front of his office. "What are you doing in your pajamas at this-?"

"I need to speak to the Head Master! Immediately!" She yelled, not caring about her appearance; this was an emergency. "I got this letter from Harry and Ron and I need to show it to him!" McGonagall immediately scanned the letter and cursed.

"Cavernous Sparks!" she muttered to the gargoyles and the moved to let them enter.

Hermione didn't wait for the staircase to move her, she ran up them frantically. When she got to the Headmaster's door she slammed on it, but it didn't open. "Headmaster, it's an emergency!" Still, no response. Taking a chance, she turned the doorknob. "Headmaster?" she asked the empty room. It was eerie quiet. The room was organized and smelled faintly of candy, but Hermione could tell something was wrong. She went to check behind his desk and gasped. There was the Headmaster, sprawled on the floor his eyes open, and lifeless.

There was a yell behind her, then a gasp as McGonagall saw what Hermione saw.

"No," Hermione heard herself whispering. The Headmaster's untwinkling blue eyes and the letter swam in her vision. She was vaguely aware of McGonagall pulling her back and taking her somewhere, trying to make her let go of the letter.

"One of you!" she heard McGonagall yelling, "Stop staring and get the Head Boy and Professor Snape!" She had such a calm voice about this. How could she be so calm? "Hermione? Hermione wipe those tears off your face and collect yourself. And for Merlin's damn sake, give me that letter!"

"Professor, what's going on?" asked a voice.

Malfoy's voice. "Malfoy?" she mentally shook herself and her eyes met a pair of surprised grey ones.

"Granger?" he asked, as McGonagall handed her to him. She was holding a piece of parchment that was crumbled and her face was in shock. Had they found-? "Professor what-?"

"Hermione will explain, and as soon as she is done, I will need both of you to gather the prefects and have two of them lockdown the school. I'm sure you know what to do in case of an emergency. Then, get all the professors you can and tell them I will need them in the Headmaster's office, and it is an emergency. If there are any students wandering, send them away immediately. No one is to know except you two and a prefect or two if you can trust them. I must go," she said in a rush and left him with Hermione.

'So they did find him,' Draco thought, feeling himself go into panic mode. Ignoring it, he turned to look at Hermione, who had seemed to compose herself. "What's going on Granger?"

She just got up and hurried to the front doors, she had to find Filch. Or Hagrid, she had to tell them to lock down and be on the lookout. Her feet took her to the owlry and she immediately scrawled to letters down and sent the birds on their way. Malfoy was looking at her confused. I can deal with him later, she thought heading to the Prefects' quarters.

"Granger!" Malfoy yelled behind her, not realizing where she was going. "What are you doing?"

"Getting the Prefects together!" she hollered! "Go tell the professors they need to go to the Headmaster's room immediately,"

"But what should I tell them? I don't even know what's going-!"

Hermione turned and looked him in the eye. "Dumbledore is dead, Draco. Someone in this castle did it. I've already made sure Hagrid is on the alert of anybody out there on the move and Filch is shutting down the castle about now," she rambled. "You need to get them, now!" she yelled, turning away from him to enter the Prefects' dorm.

"What about Potter and Weasely? Should I go get them to help you?" he asked feining concern, but really he knew Voldemort would want him to keep tab on the golden trio.

"Harry and Ron- they left." She replied in a dead voice. She looked back down at the letter and disappeared.

'They left?' he thought. 'Her two best friends leave when she needs it?'

* * *

McGonagall was grateful that Draco and Hermione had gotten everything in control. Now they, along with all the staff minus Hagrid who was outside guarding the grounds, were in the Headmaster's room. Hermione had stopped crying thankfully and was still holding that paper in her hands. Draco stood there, looking around carefully at everyone except Snape.

Draco looked at Granger again; she was still in her pajamas. Something inside him wanted to smile and give her his robe, and the other side wanted to run in the other direction from this situation. He still couldn't believe this was happening.

Snape cleared his throat so only he heard, but Draco refused to look at him. Damn this man, he wasn't going to give him the attention he wanted. He had never asked Snape to do this for him.

McGonagall cleared her throat and again began explaining. Every time she said Dumbledore's name, Hermione would pale and something inside his stomach twisted. "He also left this in his drawer," McGonagall continued, hold up a piece of parchment with writing on it. "It's sort of a will. I've informed the ministry and they will be here tomorrow morning to sort out the affairs. In the meantime, the Head Master has asked Professor Snape to take his place," She said, her voice clipped.

All eyes turned to Snape and Draco reluctantly looked as well. Snape raised an eyebrow and said in his drone-like voice, "Me? The Head Master?" Though his voice tried to sound confused, Draco could see in his eyes it was just a mask.

Though McGonagall did not seem pleased, she nodded. "The painter will also be coming tomorrow so then we may be able to ask the Head Master what his real intention is."

"But Minerva," asked Madame Pomfrey. "What about the children? How will we tell them?"

"And of course we have to have a funeral for the Head Master!" said Slugghorn interrupting the nurse.

"And what of Potter?" Trewanly asked and everyone became silent.

McGonagall looked at Hermione, and everyone else also turned to look at her. McGonagall sighed and said, "Harry as well as the two youngest Weasely's, Ron and Ginny, have left to find a way to defeat the Dark Lord." There were many gasps around the room at this and everyone began speaking at once.

"They cannot just-" "We have to go get-" "They aren't secure out there-" "They won't last a second against the Dark-" "They have no idea-" "How do you k-"

Suddenly, Snape stood up. "Enough," he said, his eyes scanning everyone. "There will not be any more discussion about this until the Ministry or whoever arrives."

"But Potter-"

Snape narrowed his eyes at Trewanly. "Potter is not a little brat anymore. He obviously does not need our help if he can just go off on his own. I would hope his arrogance leads him right. In the meantime, we need to deal with our own school and make sure everything –"

"Professor Snape!" Granger called from the window. Her voice was panicked and Draco hurried to see what she was worried about. When he looked at the sky, he felt his blood run cold.

Snape came behind them to see what they were looking at and paled. By now, all the students had looked outside and even some were standing in the lawn. They all looked up into the night sky to see it was illuminated by the Dark Mark.

It was a dark green skull with a snake coming out of the mouth. The brightness of the Mark competed against the stars and it's movement captured everyone's attention. Sometimes Draco mused that if it didn't inflict so much fear in everyone's hearts, it might be seen as a work of art.

"Hagrid!" Hermione yelled and Draco looked down to see him unconscious on the ground. Not caring about what she was doing, Hermione pushed everyone out of her way and ran down the stairs all the way down to him.

Snape was standing in the corner and grabbed Draco by this robe. He was standing there clutching his left arm where Draco knew the Dark Mark was throbbing.

"Listen here," he said in a hushed tone. "You will get an owl or a messenger tonight or next morning. You have a new task; get Granger to help, and don't ask how or let her know what's going on. Be grateful I saved you from this, but you have to work on this new task by yourself. I have things to take care of now, and I don't know how to help anymore, Draco." Draco looked up into his Godfather's face and saw a tired man. He still remembered all the times when Snape was his best friend, how had it gotten to this? "Good luck," he said and turned away from Draco with a swish of his robes.

* * *

A/N I hope this came as a surprise to you all! I really am enjoying re-writing this story so hopefully the update will come quickly :) REVIEW


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